Bought a 17" Macbook Pro about 4 months ago from eBay. A bit more expensive than a PC of similar spec, but what you get is also much more. Far less flaky than the alternative.

Both my children and my parents (when babysitting) are regular users, neither had much computer experience, much less on a Mac. Gave them a separate login and they were away with next to nothing in the way of showing them the ropes.

For family use, its easy of use is perfect. I'd be be worrying constantly about potentially deleted files etc on a PC.

Battery life isn't great, but not an issue for me, though if you're using it in a more mobile way than I suppose it could be. Lighter tones on the screen are not as subtle as on some screens that I have seen. Minor niggles though. Very happy with it.